West Memphis man convicted of Manslaughter

West Memphis man convicted of Manslaughter

East guilty in 2016 homicide case, receives 25- year sentence

Second Judicial District Justin East, 28, of West Memphis was convicted last Thursday of Manslaughter and Fleeing.

The Crittenden County jury recommended a sentence of 25 years. Circuit Judge Randy Philhours followed the jury’s recommendation and imposed the recommended terms, deciding to run them consecutively.

The conviction stems from the May 24, 2016, shooting death of another West Memphis man. At approximately 10 a.m. that morning, the defendant got into a fight with Dedrick Meadows, 40, of West Memphis. After a brief scuffle, East pulled a .32 caliber revolver and shot the victim six times. Four of the bullets entered Meadows’s back as he was trying to run away from the altercation. Meadows was unarmed.

East fled the scene at a high rate of speed in a pickup truck as West Memphis Detectives Stacy Allen, Martin Gill and Ira Roundtree gave chase.

East threw the weapon out of the vehicle as he was being pursued. East pled self-defense. The trial began on Nov. 7, and ended when the jury returned its verdict and sentence recommendation at 8:03 p.m. on Thursday evening, Nov. 9. The jury, which was made up of 7 women and 5 men, deliberated four hours.

The jury also found East guilty of using a firearm to commit a felony and tampering with evidence.

Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Tom Young prosecuted the case for the State of Arkansas.

“I want to thank Deputy Prosecutor Tom Young for his thorough efforts in obtaining justice for the family of Dedrick Meadows,” said Prosecuting Attorney Scott Ellington. This was a tough case and he devoted many hours preparing for this trial. I also want to thank the officers of the West Memphis Police Department who arrested the defendant and investigated this case. The jury thoughtfully considered the evidence and spent three long days hearing evidence and rendering a just verdict.”

From Scott Ellington